Gliomas

A drug that illuminates brain tumor cells is allowing surgeons to better remove hard-to-visualize tumors, and could become standard treatment within five years, Allegheny General Hospital surgeons announced. There are four medical centers in the United States studying the compound known as 5-aminolevulinic acid, or ALA. Patients in Germany who received it survived an additional four months, said Dr. Matthew R. Quigley, director of neuro-oncology at AGH. "I wouldn't want to go back to doing surgery without this drug," Quigley said.

A drug that illuminates brain tumor cells is allowing surgeons to better remove hard-to-visualize tumors, and could become standard treatment within five years, Allegheny General Hospital surgeons announced. There are four medical centers in the United States studying the compound known as 5-aminolevulinic acid, or ALA. Patients in Germany who received it survived an additional four months, said Dr. Matthew R. Quigley, director of neuro- oncology at AGH. "I wouldn't want to go back to doing surgery without this drug," Quigley said.

SAN DIEGO -- An experimental therapy for deadly cancerous brain tumors suggests that specially treated white blood cells implanted in the brain may prolong life or even eradicate the tumors, a neurosurgeon reported. The new immunotherapy being tested on 60 patients with malignant brain tumors, including former Kansas City Royals manager Dick Howser, arms the body`s own lymphocytes to fight gliomas, the most common brain tumors in adults. Dr. Skip Jacques described the preliminary research under way at the Huntington Medical Research Institutes in Pasadena, Calif.

Sheryl Shetsky was 32, married with two toddler boys and a career as a graphic artist when she got a devastating diagnosis. She had a tumor on her brainstem. Doctors told her she had two, maybe three years to live. She refused to follow that timetable because she wanted to be around to raise her boys. Instead, she began a journey to find out everything she needed to beat the tumor. She couldn't find a support group, so she started one. She educated herself on the research in the field, and the researchers pursuing it. Seventeen years later, she is on a first-name basis with the leading brain tumor experts in the country and has no trouble getting them to come to South Florida every 18 months to speak about the latest developments in treatment and diagnosis of brain cancer at a conference she organizes.

A toxin used by a scorpion to paralyze its prey may be a potent weapon against deadly human brain tumors. Dr. Adam Mamelak and colleagues at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center's Dunitz Neurosurgical Institute in Los Angeles have been testing a substance developed from a protein in the venom of the giant yellow Israeli scorpion. Other scientists found the venom protein has a unique affinity for malignant tumor cells and stays clear of normal tissue. Mamelak and colleagues thought it could be used like a guided missile to deliver radioactive iodine to the tumor cells.

Sheryl Shetsky was 32, married with two toddler boys and a career as a graphic artist when she got a devastating diagnosis. She had a tumor on her brainstem. Doctors told her she had two, maybe three years to live. She refused to follow that timetable because she wanted to be around to raise her boys. Instead, she began a journey to find out everything she needed to beat the tumor. She couldn't find a support group, so she started one. She educated herself on the research in the field, and the researchers pursuing it. Seventeen years later, she is on a first-name basis with the leading brain tumor experts in the country and has no trouble getting them to come to South Florida every 18 months to speak about the latest developments in treatment and diagnosis of brain cancer at a conference she organizes.

Sheryl Shetsky was 32, married with two toddler boys and a career as a graphic artist when she got a devastating diagnosis. She had a tumor on her brainstem. Doctors told her she had two, maybe three years to live. She refused to follow that timetable because she wanted to be around to raise her boys. Instead, she began a journey to find out everything she needed to beat the tumor. She couldn't find a support group, so she started one. She educated herself on the research in the field, and the researchers pursuing it. Seventeen years later, she is on a first-name basis with the leading brain tumor experts in the country and has no trouble getting them to come to South Florida every 18 months to speak about the latest developments in treatment and diagnosis of brain cancer at a conference she organizes.

People who have used cell phones for 10 years or more appear to have a higher risk of developing a type of brain tumor called glioma on the side of the head where they usually hold the phone, compared with people who don't use the phones, according to a five-country European study. Results of the study, which involved more than 4,500 people, were published Monday by the International Journal of Cancer on its Web site, prior to publication in the print version of the monthly journal. Gliomas can be slow-growing or fast-growing tumors, and in worst cases can result in death.

Scientists have developed a genetic test that could help doctors predict which patients suffering aggressive brain cancer are most likely to benefit from chemotherapy. The test, developed at the Johns Hopkins Oncology Center, reflects a growing understanding of the subtleties that make some tumors responsive to treatment -- and others not. "What this may do is allow you to tailor treatment closer to the biology of the cancer," said Dr. James Herman, the oncologist who headed the research.

An old drug with a new twist is making its way into clinical studies around the country. Poly-ICLC, a cancer-fighting drug once prescribed in toxically high doses to cancer patients, is now given in minute doses with encouraging initial results, according to a report in a recent issue of the Neurosurgery Journal. A study of brain cancer patients with "stage three" tumors showed 20 of the 30 patients enrolled had tumors either stabilize in size, shrink or disappear according to magnetic resonance imaging brain-scan evidence.

Sheryl Shetsky was 32, married with two toddler boys and a career as a graphic artist when she got a devastating diagnosis. She had a tumor on her brainstem. Doctors told her she had two, maybe three years to live. She refused to follow that timetable because she wanted to be around to raise her boys. Instead, she began a journey to find out everything she needed to beat the tumor. She couldn't find a support group, so she started one. She educated herself on the research in the field, and the researchers pursuing it. Seventeen years later, she is on a first-name basis with the leading brain tumor experts in the country and has no trouble getting them to come to South Florida every 18 months to speak about the latest developments in treatment and diagnosis of brain cancer at a conference she organizes.

A toxin used by a scorpion to paralyze its prey may be a potent weapon against deadly human brain tumors. Dr. Adam Mamelak and colleagues at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center's Dunitz Neurosurgical Institute in Los Angeles have been testing a substance developed from a protein in the venom of the giant yellow Israeli scorpion. Other scientists found the venom protein has a unique affinity for malignant tumor cells and stays clear of normal tissue. Mamelak and colleagues thought it could be used like a guided missile to deliver radioactive iodine to the tumor cells.

SAN DIEGO -- An experimental therapy for deadly cancerous brain tumors suggests that specially treated white blood cells implanted in the brain may prolong life or even eradicate the tumors, a neurosurgeon reported. The new immunotherapy being tested on 60 patients with malignant brain tumors, including former Kansas City Royals manager Dick Howser, arms the body`s own lymphocytes to fight gliomas, the most common brain tumors in adults. Dr. Skip Jacques described the preliminary research under way at the Huntington Medical Research Institutes in Pasadena, Calif.

Because of the golf ball-size tumor growing inside Dylan Jeskey's brain, the chubby, blue-eyed baby can't sit up on his own, hold a bottle or crawl. But his smile can light up a room. Today, the Coconut Creek toddler turns 1 and his loved ones will celebrate his fragile life with a party. Dylan already has survived brain surgery and now is dealing with chemotherapy for inoperable cancer. His parents want to raise awareness of pediatric brain tumors and the need for more research. "You have to create your own path," said Dylan's father, Paul Jeskey, 30, who runs a linen rental service.